All-solid-state Li-S battery via spray deposition

A key to the practical implementation of the Li-S battery is enabling the reversible and dendrite-free plating and stripping of the Li-metal anode at practical current densities (> 10 mA cm-2) and practical coulombic efficiencies (>99.9%). Several strategies have been proposed to achieve this target, from bulk electrolyte modifications to SEI engineering to in-situ and ex-situ surface modification. The Li-S chemistry imposes even more severe constraints having to protect the Li-metal from polysulphides shuttling between the sulfur cathode and the Li-metal anode, hampering the rechargeability of the battery, further decreasing coulombic efficiency/cell capacity and corroding the Li anode.

Replacing the liquid electrolyte with a solid could address all these concerns. The SOLBAT fast-start project has made a good progress in understanding the fundamental causes at the origin of the poor cyclability and dendrite growth in solid electrolytes and toward the realization of thin film ceramic membranes. Sulfide-based solid electrolytes in particular have ionic conductivities and comparable to liquid electrolytes, they are softer and therefore more easily processable and densified at scale and their densities are comparable with the in particular solid electrolytes have higher ionic conductivities, soterIn particular, we have are now able to spray deposit Argyrodites (Li6PS5Cl) are particular.

Experimental techniques: 4-electrodes electrochemistry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, in-situ and ex-situ Raman, XPS, AFM, TOF-SIMS and low-dose electron microscopy techniques will be used to characterize the interphase layer and its growth.

The EPSRC theme is Energy.